A cue stick is typically made about five feet long and of wood such as ash or maple, and tapers to from about 11 m.m. to about 14 m.m. diameter at a free end. To such free end there is assembled, typically by a form of adhesive, a short, often rounded tip typically made of an impressionable material such as leather. The purpose of the tip is to facilitate striking a cue ball with a cue stick. The tip permits the cue ball to be pressed into the leather to better engage the free end of the cue stick to the cue ball. Another purpose for the tip is to protect the cue ball from nicks and scratches. A further purpose for the tip is to impart a given "spin" to a cue ball, sometimes called giving "english" to the ball. Still another purpose for the tip is to enhance the velocity with which a cue ball may be driven. The tip also protects the end of a cue stick from splitting and splintering upon impact with a cue ball. For these and other reasons, cue tips are of much concern to pool and billiard players.
Most tips are purchased in a substantially preformed condition. Heretofore, tips were often merely cylindrical in form, having planar faces on each of two ends and being wider than the expected width of a cue stick. The forming of such a tip after it is glued to a cue stick is explained at some length in U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,824 to M. Zownir. Another reference disclosing means for forming such a tip after it is glued to a cue stick is U.S. Pat. No. 4,594,782 to J. Willard, showing at FIG. 6, a condition before forming and at FIG. 5, a condition after forming such a cue tip.
Another preformed tip has a convex cap portion for striking a ball and a generally cylindrical portion with a planar end for connection to the free end of a cue stick. The cap and connecting portions are typically wider than the expected width of a cue stick. Heretofore, it is believed that most such tips were manually adhered to the free end of a cue stick without special alignment tools. Then the excess width was trimmed utilizing a trimmer such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,370 to M. Zownir.
A problem with manually aligning cue tips having convex striking portions is that one must estimate by sight, the location of the centerline of the striking portion of the cap and the centerline of the cue stick. Then the tip must be adhered to the free end of the cue stick by aligning the two centerlines, a very tedious procedure. A further complication is that one must be sure that the tip does not move laterally by gravity or by bumping while the adhesive is setting up. A further problem is that a convex cap is sometimes tilted with respect to the connecting portion of a tip during preforming and it is then difficult to observe a desired dome portion of a cap and to offset the tip on a stick to utilize the centerline of such dome portion for alignment.
A prior art device is provided for mechanically aligning to cue sticks, tips having convex caps and connecting portions. Such a device is sold as "Willard's Classic Tipper-Trimmer" by Willard's, P.0. Box 156, Aurora, Ill. 60507 and it is believed that application for patent has been made on such device. A problem with the Willard device is that it primarily engages only the cylindrical connecting portion of a tip and aligns the same to the centerline of a cue stick. Consequently, the Willard device does not align to the cap and is not seen to correct for a tip having its cap tilted with respect to its connecting portion. Another problem with the Willard device is that separate collets and tip holders must be purchased and respectively installed in the device for different sizes of cue sticks and tips. A further problem is that the Willard device does not adjustably, mechanically press a tip to a cue stick. Another problem is that the Willard device weighs so much and is so large that it cannot readily be carried in a standard cue stick pouch or in one's pocket.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide new and improved apparatus for assembling to a cue stick, a tip having a convex cap portion for striking a ball. It is desirable to mechanically align such a tip to a cue stick for trimming to a symmetrical tip even though the cap may be tilted with respect to the connecting portion. It is further desirable that such apparatus include means for assembling to a cue stick, tips of more than one size. Such apparatus should adjustably press a tip to a stick. And such apparatus should be sufficiently light in weight and small in size to be carried in a standard cue pouch or in an adult player's pocket.